Volkswagen Ins. Co. v. Dung Ba Nguyen

405 So. 2d 190
CourtDistrict Court of Appeal of Florida
DecidedSeptember 8, 1981
Docket79-2330, 80-60 and 80-202
StatusPublished
Cited by15 cases

This text of 405 So. 2d 190 (Volkswagen Ins. Co. v. Dung Ba Nguyen) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court of Appeal of Florida primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Volkswagen Ins. Co. v. Dung Ba Nguyen, 405 So. 2d 190 (Fla. Ct. App. 1981).

Opinion

405 So.2d 190 (1981)

VOLKSWAGEN INSURANCE COMPANY, Continental Insurance Company, and James E. Fulton, Jr., M.D., Appellants,
v.
DUNG BA NGUYEN, Appellee.

Nos. 79-2330, 80-60 and 80-202.

District Court of Appeal of Florida, Third District.

September 8, 1981.
Rehearing Denied November 12, 1981.

*191 Batchelor, Brodnax, Guthrie & Primm and Robert A. Freyer, Corlett, Merritt, Killian & Sikes, Daniels & Hicks and Mark Hicks, Smathers & Thompson and George Volsky and Jose R. Garcia-Pedrosa, Peters, Pickle, Flynn, Niemoeller, Stieglitz & Hart and Stephen A. Stieglitz, Miami, for appellants.

Podhurst, Orseck & Parks and Joel D. Eaton, Rossman & Baumberger, Miami, for appellee.

Lee, Schulte, Murphy & Coe, Miami, for Holyoke Mut. Ins. Co. In Salem as amicus curiae.

*192 Before HUBBART, C.J., and BARKDULL and NESBITT, JJ.

BARKDULL, Judge.

The plaintiff, Dung Ba Nguyen (hereinafter referred to as Ming) was injured as a result of a freak accident.

At the time of the accident, Ming was employed by AHC Pharmaceutical (hereinafter referred to as AHC). This company produced medications; it is wholly owned by Dr. James E. Fulton, Jr. and his wife. Fulton and his wife are also the sole shareholders of Florida Growers Nursery (hereinafter referred to as Fla. Growers). Fulton also owns James E. Fulton, Jr., M.D., P.A.

On Friday, October 21, 1977, Dr. Fulton's secretary asked Ming to work Sunday, October 23. Ming was requested to move certain items from AHC's prior address to its then location; he was also to help Fulton move furniture from his residence on Key Biscayne to Fla. Growers for storage because the doctor was preparing to move to California. Ming arrived at AHC on Sunday, the 23rd, where he was met by Fulton and another AHC employee, Charles Franklin. The three men went across the street to a vacant lot, where a "stake" truck belonging to Fla. Growers had been parked for about six months. It wouldn't start so they had to "fix it". Ming installed a battery and Franklin then unsuccessfully attempted to start the engine. The men decided that the truck was either out of gas or it had water in the gas tank. Fulton sent Ming back to AHC to get a can of gasoline. Upon his return, Ming poured gas in the tank and gave Fulton a small cup of gas. Franklin attempted to start the truck while Fulton poured some gas in the carburetor. After about the third or fourth attempt to start the truck by pouring gas into the carburetor, the gas burst into flames and the small cup of gas Fulton was holding caught fire. Fulton immediately threw the cup which struck Ming in the chest, resulting in burns to Ming.

This action was commenced by Ming, claiming damages for personal injuries from Fla. Growers, Fulton and Continental Insurance Company (hereinafter referred to as Continental). In the second amended complaint, it was alleged Fulton negligently threw burning gasoline on Ming while he (Fulton) was pouring gas into the carburetor of a trucked owned by Fla. Growers. The complaint alleged Continental provided liability insurance coverage for Fulton. Fulton answered and filed a crossclaim against Continental, claiming insurance coverage for the accident under a homeowner's policy issued to him and his wife, covering their Key Biscayne home. Fulton, further, filed a third party complaint against Volkswagen Insurance Company (hereinafter referred to as VICO), claiming coverage under his automobile policy insuring his private automobile. VICO answered the third party complaint, alleging no coverage on the grounds that the accident did not arise out of the maintenance and use of an automobile and that, if so, coverage was excluded because the truck was available to Fulton for his regular use and was not in VICO's policy, and that the accident occurred while Ming was employed or engaged in a business. Fulton, additionally, filed an amended crossclaim against Continental for coverage for the accident under a Special Multi-Peril policy (hereinafter referred to as SMP). Continental denied coverage under both of its policies. During the proceedings, a notice of lien was filed by Cosmopolitan Insurance Company, who paid workmen's compensation benefits to Ming for the accident.[1] Fulton, VICO, and Continental each moved for summary judgment on the insurance coverage issues.

The trial court held that both Continental's homeowner's policy and its SMP provided coverage for this accident. He also held that VICO had coverage under its automobile policy. He denied Continental's and VICO's motions. A declaratory judgment for coverage was entered in favor of Fulton relative to the Continental policies and in favor of Fulton on the VICO policy.

*193 The claim of Ming proceeded to trial and, pursuant to a jury verdict, final judgment was entered awarding him damages in the amount of $350,000.00 against Fulton and Continental.[2]

Motions for rehearing and for new trial were filed by Continental, asserting, inter alia, that newly discovered evidence revealed that the SMP policy had been cancelled prior to the date of the accident. The court denied the motions for rehearing and for new trial,[3] and these appeals followed.

This is a consolidation of the following three appeals:

1. Notice of appeal filed by VICO in Case No. 79-2330 was directed to the declaratory judgment against it as a third party defendant, relating to insurance coverage under Fulton's automobile policy.

2. Notice of appeal filed by Fulton in Case No. 80-60, which was directed to the final judgment in favor of Ming for $350,000.00 and against defendants, Fulton and Continental, and the order denying defendant's motion for judgment in accordance with motion for directed verdict and motion for new trial.

3. Notice of appeal filed by Continental in Case No. 80-202, which was directed to the final judgment in favor of Ming and against the defendants, Fulton and Continental, and the declaratory judgment relating to insurance coverage.

No point on appeal is made by any of the defendants as to the liability of Fulton, although a point is made as to the damages being excessive. The other points preserved relate to the question of coverage under the several insurance policies involved.

We find no error in denying the motion for new trial upon the ground that the jury award was excessive. See: Talcott v. Hall, 224 So.2d 420 (Fla.3d DCA 1969); Seaboard Coast Line Railroad Company v. McKelvey, 259 So.2d 777 (Fla.3d DCA 1972), affirmed 270 So.2d 705 (Fla. 1973); Bould v. Touchette, 349 So.2d 1181 (Fla. 1977).

VICO POLICY

We find no coverage under this policy for the following reasons:

The VICO policy contains a clear exclusion that no coverage is provided to "non owned" automobiles if it is furnished or available for the insured's regular use, as follows:

"9. For the ownership, maintenance or use of any vehicle, other than your covered auto, which is owned by you or furnished or available for your regular use."

The purpose of the exclusion and the reason why it has been found valid is that an insured cannot insure one vehicle and then have his policy cover all other vehicles which are available to him and in which he has an interest.

Fulton, in the third party complaint, alleged coverage under VICO's "non owned automobile" provision. The purpose of such provision is to cover the insured while "engaged in infrequent and casual use of an automobile other than the one described in the policy". Henigson v. Davis,

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Bluebook (online)
405 So. 2d 190, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/volkswagen-ins-co-v-dung-ba-nguyen-fladistctapp-1981.